The farce of the matter is that our politicians hide behind our well-meaning alarmists in order to keep the profits from the state liquor stores headed into the general fund. We do not maintain state liquor stores for safety or to prevent underage drinking. We maintain these stores because they bring in record profits every year. The state has no business in running liquor stores. It's a bloated business that sends out glossy advertisements in the newspaper every week, and severely limits entrepreneurship in the state. The 621 state-run liquor stores could be small businesses that pay taxes and contribute to our society. Instead, we have a monopoly which does not adapt to the individual needs of each region. Instead of attempting to limit alcohol consumption and educate consumers about the dangers of alcohol, the PLCB (Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board) is planning self-serve kiosks and wants to re-brand itself with a new name, such as "Table Leaf."

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However, Mike Turzai who is pushing this bill is doing so as a means of raising money for the state, not to curtail problems associated with alcohol consumption. The Post Gazette quoted an estimate that selling licenses could raise between $2B and $6B. Two problems: Why is the range of this estimate so wide? And, why did the paper fail to include in the article another figure that is absolutely crucial to understanding the economics of the proposed policy change, that is, the amount of money the State Stores yield to the state on a recurring annual basis, which to my recollection is in the area of $500M. Therefore, Turzai's plan would be a money-looser for the state in as little as 4 years after implementation. Personally, I just wish that the state stores would extend their hours past 9pm.

I agree with the sentiment of this blog, however, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire are not the only states that have state owned liquor stores. I used to live in Washington and before that in Oregon (my step daughter still lives in Oregon). Both states have state owned liquor stores.

I stand corrected, Thomas. On further reflection, there are 9 states that run their own liquor stores: Alabama, Idaho, New Hampshire, Oregon, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, and Utah.